South Korea hit back Tuesday Claims Covid rules against Chinese travelers are ‘discriminatory’More than half of the imported cases come from China, he said.
Seung-ho Choi, deputy director of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in a response to CNBC that up to 80% of South Korea’s “imported confirmed cases” come from China.
Cui said the number of people traveling from China who tested positive for Covid-19 increased 14-fold from November to December.
Choi also said the policy is “targeting all Koreans and non-Koreans coming from China. It is not limited to Chinese only. This measure does not discriminate based on nationality.” Stated.
Citing South Korea’s proximity to China, Choi said a surge in infections in China could put South Korea at risk.
“The COVID-19 situation in China is still deteriorating, creating the potential for new variants to be detected,” he said.
An omicron variant swept China in December after authorities relaxed strict contact tracing requirements. As of January 8, Beijing has officially eased border controls, opening more entry and exit doors.
Dangerous new Covid variant unlikely to spread in ChinaChris Murray, Ph.D., the Seattle-based director of the University of Washington’s Center for Health Research, told CNBC in late December.
China suspends visa
More than a dozen countries announced New rules for travelers departing from China. Most travelers are requiring travelers departing from China to test negative for COVID-19 prior to arrival. This is the same requirement that China imposes on international travelers to the mainland.
But South Korea and Japan, the top two destinations for Chinese travelers, said they had not increased flights in response to China’s reopening of borders. announced plans to
Chinese Embassy in South Korea Japan announced on Tuesday Stop issuing visas to “Koreans” and “Japanese citizens”.
Thai officials welcome Chinese passengers at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport on January 9, 2023.
Rachen Sageamsak | Photo by Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images
Announcement by the Chinese Embassy in Korea A CNBC translation said the rule applies to visas for tourism, business and medical reasons and “follows China’s domestic guidelines.”
“China resolutely rejects discriminatory immigration restrictions on China by a handful of countries and will take reciprocal measures,” said Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for China’s foreign ministry. said Tuesday.
‘Lack of transparency’
South Korea’s Choi said policy decisions were made after “in-depth discussions with relevant government ministries and experts”.
Noting that “the Chinese government has stopped releasing data on confirmed cases every day,” Cui said the measures were “inevitable.”
U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price said at a press conference Wednesday that the U.S. is requiring travelers from China to undergo predeparture testing, and the appropriate and transparent epidemiologic data being reported from China. and viral genome sequence data. ”
“The lack of transparency has fueled concerns that a subspecies could emerge in China and spread across borders,” he said.
‘very fair’
As a responsible member of the international community, we share the Covid-19 data we are analyzing with the world.
Choi Seung Ho
Korea Quarantine Service
Still, the Shanghai-based financial expert asked to refer to him as Derek and said South Korea’s regulations were “very fair.”
“None of my friends would get on a plane full of people who tested positive for COVID-19,” he said.
Chinese citizen Sheryl Yang said that for many people in China, travel is the least of their concerns.
“Many people I know get sick or [are] Many children are out of school because of illness,” she said. “At the moment, travel is going to be a secondary issue.”
“Only temporary”
Choi said South Korea’s new Covid travel restrictions were “temporary” and were done to “prioritize the health and safety of people living in South Korea”.
The surge in Covid infections sweeping across China could mean the country can get over the outbreak quickly, with some saying the economy could recover quickly in the second quarter of 2023. increase.
A HSBC Global Research report published on 5 January noted that China’s economic reopening is progressing faster than expected, saying, “China will emerge from Covid-19 and recover strongly from 2Q23.” said.
“We will do our utmost to help the world overcome the pandemic,” Choi said.
“As responsible members of the international community, we will share the Covid-19 data under analysis with the world,” he said.
